A long wait for Wandering Earth 3

The Wandering Earth 2, the blockbuster sequel to China's highest-grossing sci-fi film, will get additional overseas release in countries including Japan, following its recent release in France and Germany, director Guo Fan said during a promotional event.

For die-hard fans, the wait for the third and final film in the series, which is adapted from Hugo Award-winning writer Liu Cixin's book of the same name, will be long. According to an announcement during this year's Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Festival in Xiamen, Fujian province, on Nov 3, it won't be released until the 2027 Spring Festival.

The cast from the first two movies, including Wu Jing, Andy Lau, and Li Xuejian, will return for the third installment, but their roles have not yet been revealed.

In the first film, Wu plays an astronaut who sacrifices his life to save the Earth. The second movie, which is a prequel, involves a plot in which Wu falls in love with an astronaut who later becomes his wife.

For Guo, another advantage to filming the The Wandering Earth movies over nine years is that he has had a smoother time exploring the planned, standardized, and procedural path of Chinese film production.

He said that he plans to use AI technology to control costs while continuing to deliver good special effects.